The Twilight Saga

I know I know. I’m late. And very much so. I didn’t understand the hype – shoot me.

Just under 2 years ago, while at work, my female boss was telling me about some book her daughter was reading. She and I used to trade paperbacks often. I wasn’t 100% listening as I was doing something at the same time but I remember her telling me that the books, while focusing on teens, were so well-written an adult could enjoy them – namely her. I asked her the title but by the time I left work later on that day, I had forgotten it. Fast forward a few months and there was this HUGE phenonmenon sweeping the nation. Some movie named Twilight had just opened to rave reviews and people everywhere were talking. I was like .. wth!? I didn’t get it. I knew very little.

Slowly, the buzz got back to me, personally, and I was quite curious. When I realized the movie was based on a quartet of books, I asked my female boss the name again, and she told me, Twilight. The same name of the movie I was told I should see.

So, now, I was at home one night, and I decided to watch the movie online. This had a  lot to do with the fact that, three days before I had taken the little one to see Madagascar 2 and Twilight had played in the theatre beforehand. All the people (and they were of various ages) coming out were exuberant in their love of the film. This movie HAD to be good, I thought. I figured, if I watch it in the privacy of my own home no one will know I watched it. A mangy teen flick … oooooo what would people think! lol

I watched and needless to say, I LOVED IT! I was taken in almost immediately by the good looking cast, storyline and script. It was just something about the story that had me enchanted. And dont even get me started on the characters. They were amazing, only heightened by the intense and passionate chemistry of the two lead actors, Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson (who, if you don’t already know, I’m madly in love with and will have MANY babies by – lol). I was hooked. But not obsessed. I mean, a previous post of mine about an oddly obsessed Twilight fan wasn’t how I felt but I guess I could see her enthusiasm.

Afterwards, I realized I had to read the books. I’d been told repeatedly that while the movie was great, the books were even better. I borrowed the first book from a girl in my class and finished it in just a couple days. The more I read, the more I fell in love with this story. I WANT ME AN EDWARD, dammit! Vampire or Human, I don’t care!!! LOL. I couldn’t wait for my classmate to give me the 2nd book (New Moon) so I stepped into Walmart before class and bought it *serious blank face goes here* .

I am only a few chapters into New Moon and am ONCE again engrossed. I don’t use the term magical often but these books have me under a spell, so help me God. They are magical. I am eagerly awaiting the movie as well. I honestly, have to say, Stephenie Meyer has an amazing ability to make you just not READ her books but want to actually be a PART of them. She engages you to the point where you TRULY cannot put the book down. Her writing is captivating and flows with amazing detail.  The romantic angle of tortured lovebirds Bella and Edward is sweet and not cheesy and for an adult reading this book you get a chance to relive your first love through them.

I echo what my female boss told me and it seems like ages ago: don’t let your age deter you from reading these books. You’re missing out! Trust me!

Book Review: Salem Falls

Great book. Modern day witch hunt based in Salem Falls with amazing quotes from the classic novel “The Crucible“. At times this book can drag on and a lot of the plot isn’t necessary but all the same I enjoyed this book. A lot.

Jodi Picoult delivers another well written page turner.  This is the second book I’ve read by her and I plan to continue reading the other’s shes penned. The story follows a man by the name of Jack St. Bride – former teacher wrongly accused and convicted of sex with one of his students. Jack leaves prison almost a year later trying to start over in Salem Falls where tragically history repeats itself. This story is one of secrets, sex and lies and the way it unfolds is nothing short of originality and scandal.

I absolutely love the characters and how they are developed. You know the entire time that Jack St. Bride is innocent but there is JUST a little part of you that wonders WHAT IF because the details of what happened that fateful night aren’t fully revealed until later on in the book. Great suspense building. I will honestly state that I knew all along what was going on with the protagonist, Gillian Duncan but I won’t give it away here. Call it intuition but I just KNEW what was up with her. The very last pages made me HOORAH in excitement – lol. I love having a feeling and being right about it. haha.

I highly recommend this book. It’s a good and easy read and I guarantee you will love it.

♦     ♦     ♦

More detailed synopsis: Jack St. Bride was once a beloved teacher and soccer coach at a girls’ prep school – until a student’s crush sparked a powder keg of accusation and robbed him of his career and reputation. Now, after a devastatingly public ordeal that left him with an eight-month jail sentence and no job, Jack resolves to pick up the pieces of his life. He takes a job washing dishes at Addie Peabody’s diner and slowly starts to form a relationship with her in the quiet New England village of Salem Falls. But just when Jack thinks he has outrun his past, a quartet of teenage girls with a secret turn his world upside down once again, triggering a modern-day witch hunt in a town haunted by its own history…

Book Review: Love The One You’re With

Emily Giffin is currently one of my favourite “chick lit” authors. Her name is usually one of the first I look for when perusing the shelves at Chapters.

I’ve read all of her books starting with “Something Borrowed” that spawned two follow up novels. Her writing is relatable, real, honest, and endearingly charming. Her characters are believable and well-developed. When I read a novel I want to KNOW the character I’m reading – and she does that amazingly well.

This  particular novel takes place in New York focusing on our heroine, Ellen Graham née Dempsey. Raised in Pittsburgh, Ellen lost her mother at an early age. She went away to college and befriended her wealthy but friendly roommate, Margot.  In the latter years of her college experience, Ellen met Leo, in of all places, while doing jury duty. Thus began a great courtship both filled with passion and intensity. However, without a strong understanding of why, Leo and Ellen’s romance and relationship falters and altogether dies out shortly after one New Year’s Eve.

In the presence of Ellen’s brokenheart she takes up a new hobby that ends up turning into a thriving career – photography. In the course of mending her heart she ends up dating Andy, her best friend Margot’s brother. Their courtship is romantic, based on a strong friendship and eventually they marry. All seems to be well until a fateful rainy day where Ellen runs into Leo in the middle of an intersection. Thus begins a tumultuous game of “what if” and “could be“.

The book pretty much deals with the question of: how can one woman love the one she is with when she is constantly thinking about the one that got away?

On a personal level I could relate to the concept of this story and while it’s “only a book” there was a VERY important lesson I took from it; the past is the past for a reason. It may not make sense. It may not be logical. It may not be easy to deal with or get over but, the past is indeed THE PAST.

I also took from this story, the quote I posted yesterday – directly below this blog entry.

Without giving away too much of the book (and definitely the ending), I think the question this story raises is a good one and any woman that has been haunted by the “what ifs” of her past will relate. Readers will follow Ellen’s journey into dangerous territory as she comes face to face with some tough, real-life decisions.

Emily Giffin’s novels are easy and quick reads. There are good and bad things to this because you wish the book won’t end but you are so engrossed with the stories and characters that you fly through it.

I highly recommend this book. It’s light, enjoyable reading as well as smart and witty. A page turner that you wont want to put down; I believe I read it in 3 days. PICK IT UP – lol.

I LOVED This Book As A Child ♥

I wish I could find a bigger picture.

This was an amazing book I read back in elementary school (I used to have a copy signed by the author but have lost it over the years) and it dealt with being different and teased and bullied and for whatever reason its lessons ALWAYS stayed with me and I remembered it tonight while talking about a sexy Italian man ( I KNOW how wrong that seems but lol … sue me!)

My Sister’s Keeper

5 out of 5 stars

Never have I read such a book that pulled at my heartstrings. NEVER has a book made me cry. And not just a tear or two but real alligator tears. I can’t even being to describe the emotions this book brought out of me. A brief synopsis of the plot:

Anna is not sick, but she might as well be. By age thirteen, she has undergone countless surgeries, transfusions, and shots so that her older sister, Kate, can somehow fight the leukemia that has plagued her since childhood. The product of preimplantation genetic diagnosis, Anna was conceived as a bone marrow match for Kate – a life and a role that she has never questioned… until now. Like most teenagers, Anna is beginning to question who she truly is. But unlike most teenagers, she has always been defined in terms of her sister – and so Anna makes a decision that for most would be unthinkable… a decision that will tear her family apart and have perhaps fatal consequences for the sister she loves. My Sister’s Keeper examines what it means to be a good parent, a good sister, a good person. Is it morally correct to do whatever it takes to save a child’s life… even if that means infringing upon the rights of another? Is it worth trying to discover who you really are, if that quest makes you like yourself less?

The story of Anna Fitzgerald is unlike any I’ve ever read. Jodi Picoult is a genius. She writes from all characters perspectives and just when you feel you’ve chosen a side, she outrightly challenges that decision with a completely different viewpoint. How she was able to do it, I’ll never know but this book challenges our spirit and psyche.  You soon realize with this story that no side can be chosen. There is no right or wrong here. There is only faith. You can’t imagine being in the position of losing a child and then, knowing your other child can save them, but won’t. I don’t want to give away too much of the book so I’ll stop there but I highly recommend this for anyone that needs to reconnect with the meaning of the human spirit. The ending of the story is not one the reader could ever think of and its completely heartwrenching. The twist at the end is sad but almost necessary. The topic of ‘donor children’ is current and controversial but Picoult manages to tackle the subject with an unyielding sensitivity.  It’s a book I just couldn’t put down and I flew through it. I’ll be sure to read more of Picoults work after this, without a doubt.

There is also a movie being made starring Cameron Diaz, Alec Baldwin and Abigail Breslin, due out in 2009.

With this being such an emotional story, I hope the movie is done well or I will be gravely disappointed.

The Importance Of Being Married – Gemma Townley

 

3 out of 5 stars

First time reading a book by Gemma Townley. It won’t be my last. What a good story. It’s endearing, charming, funny and just an all around fun read. I’m a huge chick lit fan and this book won’t disappoint if you’re into this sort of genre.

The book starts by introducing us to our heroine, Jessica Wild, who is a rather plain Jane, obsessed with work, raised by a stern and strict grandmother who told her men, romance and love are for the birds. Jess lives in a London city called Islington with her pretty and rambunctious flatmate, Helen. They are complete opposites but the dearest of friends. When Jess’ friend – an older lady she met at her grandmother’s retirement home – passes away, she learns the woman, Grace Hampton is actually Lady Hampton and has left Jess her estate worth upwards of 4 million (pounds)! But there’s a hitch. Jess, in order to make Grace happy, made up a story about being happily in love and married to her uber-successful boss, Anthony Milton. And the will is addressed to whom Grace believes Jess to be: A Mrs. Anthony Milton. Another catch: the will has to be claimed, along with papers signed, within 50 days. Quite the predicament, huh?

So Jessica, with help of Helen and a couple other crazy characters, embark on a mission to get Anthony Milton to date her, fall madly in love with her, propose to her and alas, marry her. All within 50 days. Can Jess do it?

The book and certain aspects of the plot were VERY obvious and predicatable to me, even before foreshadowing put the hints out there. I’m not sure if it was Ms. Townley’s writing style or just the fact that I pick up on things easily but nevertheless, even though I was “in the know” on characters real motives, I still enjoyed reading the book and couldn’t put it down towards the end because I was wanting desperately to know what happened next. It was quite the page turner and had a lot of heartwarming moments. None that I plan to give away here though. I’m not one for ruining another readers’ experience.

I enjoyed the different views of marriage the characters had and the part where Jess finds the perfect dress but opts for something different resonated something within me. Of course, I want and plan to get married someday and the lessons on marriage in this book weren’t lost on me. I enjoyed the fact that it’s ok to get married for the “traditionally right” reasons as well as for the “unusually wrong” ones. I know that sounds odd but if you choose to read the book, you’ll understand what I mean =)

I recommend fans of Gemma Townley to definitely read this book if they haven’t already. I plan on reading her older novels. I already have “Learning Curves” on board.  I also implore new fans to check her out. I enjoyed her simple, comprehensive and entertaining writing.

On another note: The editor, writer and never miss a thing part of me has to point out that there was a mistake, late in the book, where the main character Jess is actually called “Jen” and there is no correction/explanation as to why. One can only assume it was a mistake on Townley’s editors’ part.